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                    Zuma: Mandela Still Critical but Stable

   by VOA News

   South Africa's president says Nelson Mandela remains in critical but
   stable condition.
   President Jacob Zuma told reporters Saturday that "nothing has changed"
   overnight in Mandela's condition.  But he added a note of optimism,
   saying he hopes that the anti-apartheid icon will leave the hospital
   "very soon."
   Mandela has remained at Pretoria's Mediclinic Heart Hospital since he
   was rushed there June 8 for a recurring lung infection.
   Both Zuma and visiting U.S. President Barack Obama extensively praised
   Mandela at their joint news conference in Pretoria Saturday.
   President Obama said Nelson Mandela's "moral courage" and South
   Africa's transition to a free and democratic nation has been
   inspiration to himself and the world.
   He said Mandela recognized that a country's well-being was more
   important than a single person -- a remark likely aimed at Zimbabwe's
   President Robert Mugabe, who has ruled his country with an iron fist
   for more than 30 years.
   Mandela served only one term as South Africa's president before
   stepping down in 1999.
   Mandela is considered a national hero in South Africa for his role in
   ending official racial discrimination and white-minority rule.  After
   spending 27 years in prison, he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/zuma-says-mandela-still-critical-but-
   stable/1691760.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/zuma-says-mandela-still-critical-but-stable/1691760.html